SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Two-time All-American and 2005 NCAA champion Matt Brunner takes over as head coach for the St. Francis girls' varsity tennis program, director of athletics Ryan Chisolm announced. Brunner's appointment begins immediately, with the Troubadours reporting to practice during the first week of August.

"I'm thrilled. It's an amazing opportunity to take the program over," said Brunner. "It has a lot of great history to it, and I'm just super-excited to hopefully take it a step further and really build something special.

"I want to build a culture of really hard work, dedication and teamwork. I've been a part of many great teams in my life, and I know what it takes to feel like you're a part of something great, a real team. I'm just thrilled to be able to give that experience to the girls here, so they feel they worked hard and reaped the benefits."

Brunner is no stranger to the area tennis community, having graduated as a four-year Sac-Joaquin Section champ from nearby Jesuit High School in 2001. He went on to a successful four-year career at UC Santa Cruz. In his senior year, he teamed with Matt Seeberger to capture the NCAA Division III doubles championship while helping the Banana Slugs snare the overall team title. Brunner completed his degree in politics and environmental studies in that spring of 2005.

Brunner stayed near his collegiate alma mater with his first foray into coaching at the Santa Cruz Tennis Academy in Aptos, then later returned to the Sacramento area as a coach for the Folsom-based Broadstone Racquet Club from 2009 to 2019. Brunner then relocated to Fair Oaks in 2019 to become tennis director at Rollingwood Athletic Club. Rollingwood later partnered with JMG Tennis in 2021, and will become the Troubies' home court under Brunner's tutelage.

During his time at Broadstone, Brunner served as an assistant coach for the girls' team at Oak Ridge High. Last spring, he took over as the head coach at his high school alma mater, guiding the Marauders to a 7-4 overall record and a first-round victory in the CIF-SJS Division I playoffs.

Brunner also has family connections to Troubie athletics, as his sister, Lauren, starred for the SF water polo team in the mid-2000s. He replaces Kristi Spector, who retired in the offseason after an outstanding 12-year run at the helm. Spector won five Delta League titles, posted a section title (2017) plus two runner-up finishes, and earned NFHS State Coach of the Year honors in 2019.

St. Francis tennis begins its tryout/practice season on August 5. The Troubies also enter their first season in the Sierra Foothill League, with their first league match taking place at Rocklin on September 5.